Research

Research Groups

Faculty members and graduate students at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine participate and collaborate in a number of research groups that bring together scientists from across the University of Saskatchewan, across Canada, and around the world.

U of S Airways Research Group: Established in 2006, ARG members regularly meet to discuss airway-centric diseases that fit well with our expertise and that are important to Saskatchewan people. ARG forms a synergisitc team of airway researchers that can provide tangible outcomes for Saskatchewan residents. Individual members have been investigating small or large research questions, but the group's membership also plan to collaborate on larger clinical issues that are related to airways pathobiology.

Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre: Besides applying the veterinary medical sciences to wildlife conservation and management in Canada, the CCWHC develops and uses knowledge of wildlife health and disease to improve human health and the health of domestic animals. The CCWHC co-ordinates Canada's national wildlife health surveillance program and provides educational programs, information, and consultation to both government and non-government agencies, as well as to the public.

U of S Cardiovascular Research Group: Established in 2003, the U of S Cardiovascular Research Group fosters excellence in cardiovascular research by facilitating activity and collaboration among cardiovascular researchers at the University of Saskatchewan along the common theme of "integrated translational cardiovascular research from bench to bedside." About 20 scientists from the U of S Colleges of Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Pharmacy and Nutrition, Agriculture and Bioresources, and the School of Public Health are part of this transdisciplinary group.

U of S Immunology and Infectious Diseases Research Group: When U of S scientists sought to establish a cross-campus immunology research group in 2003, several WCVM faculty members were key players in this initiative. The group's membership includes more than a dozen principal investigators and nearly 40 research associates, post-doctoral fellows and graduate students from across campus. Researchers focus their efforts on specialities including tumour and transplant immunology, allergy and asthma, infectious diseases, inflammation, toxicology, basic immunology and immunoregulation.

U of S Neural Systems and Plasticity Research Group: Established in 2003, the U of S Neural Systems and Plasticity Research Group includes members from the Colleges of Arts and Science, Engineering, Kinesiology, Medicine, Pharmacy and Nutrition, and Veterinary Medicine. Members are united by common interests in systems neuroscience (the study of the function of neural circuits in intact organisms) and neural plasticity (changes in the nervous system with experience).

U of S Ophthalmology Research Group: Since 1999, the WCVM's ophthalmology research group has grown to include ophthalmologists and residents based at the College and the College of Medicine as well as collaborators across North America. The group's diverse research interests include identifying mutations that induce inherited ocular disease as well as investigations into the pathogenesis of complex ocular disease and the development of animal models to provide alternative therapies.

PrioNet Canada: PrioNet Canada is a Network of Centres of Excellence for research into prions and prion diseases. PrioNet's pan-Canadian network of research excellence includes over 78 diverse scientific members, nine international collaborators, along with students and young professionals working in partnership with government, non-government organizations, and industry partners to help solve the the food, health safety, and socioeconomic problems associated with prion diseases.

One Reproductive Health Group: The mission of the One Reproductive Health Group is to create a greater understanding of the origins and control of reproductive health, and to build a unique team of scientists with innovative approaches that will have a positive impact on the health and well-being of animals, humans and our environment.

Research Group for Arctic Parasitology: RGAP is an informal group of zoologists, wildlife managers, and veterinarians from universities, government, and co-management organizations. Group members have been working in the Canadian Arctic and Subarctic to advance scientists' knowledge of the biodiversity and epizootiology of parasites in northern mammals.

U of S Toxicology Group: The Toxicology Group is an interdisciplinary body under the umbrella of the U of S College of Graduate Studies and Research. Co-ordinated and managed by the Toxicology Centre, the group consists of faculty members from a number of university departments, as well as scientists from various research centres on campus.

U of S Sustainable Beef Systems Research Group: This group includes faculty from the WCVM, College of Agriculture and Bioresources, College of Engineering and the Western Beef Development Centre. This research group focuses on beef cattle raised in an environmentally sustainable system. The research on beef cattle covers breeding/genetics, reproduction, health, feeding/nutrition, behaviour, welfare, meat quality, economics, and environmentally sustainable production systems.

U of S Veterinary Oncology Group: In the past decade, a growing interest in oncology research has fostered new collaborations among researchers at the WCVM, the U of S and other research centres across North America. As a result, WCVM has a thriving oncology research group that has the real potential to address - and overcome some of the major challenges involved in diagnosing, treating and preventing cancer.